Peter the first bronze horseman. What's "bad" about ancient statues? History - the beginning

Bronze Horseman in St. Petersburg - a monument to Peter I

The Bronze Horseman in St. Petersburg is the most famous monument Peter I. It is located in an open park on Senate Square and is a unique work of Russian and world culture. The Bronze Horseman is surrounded by famous landmarks: the Senate and Synod buildings are located in the west, the Admiralty in the east, and St. Isaac's Cathedral in the south.

History of the creation of the monument
The initiative to create a monument to Peter I belongs to Catherine II. It was on her orders that Prince Alexander Mikhailovich Golitsyn turned to the professors of the Paris Academy of Painting and Sculpture Diderot and Voltaire, whose opinion Catherine II completely trusted. Famous masters recommended for this work Etienne-Maurice Falconet, who at that time worked as the chief sculptor at porcelain factory. “He has an abyss of subtle taste, intelligence and delicacy, and at the same time he is uncouth, stern, and does not believe in anything. .. He does not know self-interest,” Diderot wrote about Falcon.

Etienne-Maurice Falconet always dreamed of monumental art and received an offer to create equestrian statue colossal in size, he agreed without hesitation. On September 6, 1766, he signed a contract in which the remuneration for the work was set at 200 thousand livres, which was a fairly modest amount - other masters asked for much more. The 50-year-old master came to Russia with his 17-year-old assistant Marie-Anne Collot.
Opinions about the appearance of the future sculpture were very different. Thus, the President of the Imperial Academy of Arts, Ivan Ivanovich Belskoy, who supervised the creation of the monument, presented a sculpture of Peter I standing in full height with a rod in his hand. Catherine II saw the emperor sitting on a horse with a staff or scepter, and there were other proposals. Thus, Diderot conceived a monument in the form of a fountain with allegorical figures, and State Councilor Shtelin sent Belsky detailed description his project, according to which Peter I was supposed to appear surrounded by allegorical statues of Prudence and Hard work, Justice and Victory, which support the vices Ignorance and Laziness, Deception and Envy with their feet. Falcone rejected the traditional image of a victorious monarch and abandoned the depiction of allegories. “My monument will be simple. There will be no Barbarism, no Love of peoples, no personification of the People... I will limit myself only to the statue of this hero, whom I do not interpret either as a great commander or as a winner, although he, of course, was both. The personality of the creator, legislator, benefactor of his country is much higher, and this is what needs to be shown to people,” he wrote to Diderot.

Work on the monument to Peter I
Falconet created a model of the sculpture on the territory of the former temporary Winter Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna from 1768 to 1770. Two horses of the Oryol breed, Caprice and Brilliant, were taken from the imperial stables. Falcone made sketches, watching how the guards officer flew up on his horse onto the platform and reared it. Falcone reworked the model of the head of Peter I several times, but never achieved the approval of Catherine II and, as a result, the head of the Bronze Horseman was successfully sculpted
Marie-Anne Collot.

The face of Peter I turned out to be courageous and strong-willed, with a wide with open eyes and illuminated by deep thought.

For this work the girl was accepted as a member Russian Academy arts and Catherine II assigned her a lifelong pension of 10,000 livres.
The snake under the horse’s feet was created by Russian sculptor Fyodor Gordeev.

The plaster model of the Bronze Horseman was made by 1778 and opinions about the work were mixed. While Diderot was pleased, Catherine II did not like the arbitrarily chosen appearance of the monument.

Casting of the Bronze Horseman
The sculpture was conceived to be of colossal size and the foundry workers did not undertake this difficult work. Foreign craftsmen demanded huge amounts of money for casting, and some openly said that the casting would not be successful. Finally, a foundry worker was found, cannon master Emelyan Khailov, who took up the casting of the Bronze Horseman. Together with Falcone, they selected the composition of the alloy and made samples. The difficulty was that the sculpture had three support points and therefore the thickness of the walls of the front part of the statue had to be small - no more than one centimeter.

During the first casting, the pipe through which bronze was poured burst. In despair, Falconet ran out of the workshop, but Master Khailov was not at a loss, took off his coat and wet it with water, coated it with clay and applied it as a patch to the pipe. Risking his life, he prevented the fire, although he himself suffered burns to his hands and partially damaged his eyesight. The upper part of the Bronze Horseman was still damaged and had to be cut down. Preparation for the new casting took another three years, but this time it went well and in honor of the successful completion of the work, the sculptor left the inscription “Sculpted and cast by Etienne Falconet, Parisian 1788,” in one of the folds of Peter I’s cloak.

Installation of the Bronze Horseman
Falcone wanted to install the monument on a pedestal in the shape of a wave, carved from a natural piece of rock. It was very difficult to find the required block of 11.2 meters in height, and therefore the St. Petersburg News newspaper published an appeal to individuals wishing to find a suitable piece of rock. And soon the peasant Semyon Vishnyakov responded, having long ago noticed a suitable block near the village of Lakhta and reported this to the head of the search work.

The weight of the monolith is about 1600 tons and was called the Thunder Stone; according to legend, lightning struck it and broke off a piece of the block. To deliver the stone, piles were driven, a road was laid, a wooden platform was made moving along two parallel gutters, into which 30 balls made of copper alloy were placed. This operation was performed in winter time from November 15, 1769, when the ground was frozen and on March 27, 1770, the stone was delivered to the shore of the Gulf of Finland. Then the monolith was loaded onto a special raft, built by master Grigory Korchebnikov, strengthened between two ships. Thousands of people were involved in extracting and transporting the stone. On September 25, 1770, crowds of people greeted the Thunder Stone on the banks of the Neva near Senate Square. During transportation, dozens of stonemasons gave it the necessary shape. This event was marked by the minting of a medal “Like daring. January 1770.”
Reverse side

Face

In 1778, Falconet's relationship with Catherine II finally deteriorated and, together with Marie-Anne Collot, he was forced to leave for Paris.
The installation of the Bronze Horseman was led by Fyodor Gordeev and on August 7, 1782, the grand opening of the monument took place.
The military parade at the celebration was led by Prince Alexander Golitsyn, and Catherine II arrived along the Neva in a boat and climbed to the balcony of the Senate building. The Empress came out wearing a crown and purple and gave the sign to open the monument. The shields covering the monument opened to the beat of drums, an exclamation of admiration rang out... and regiments of guardsmen marched along the Neva embankment.

But the author was not among the enthusiastic audience; he was not even invited to the opening ceremony. Only later did Prince Golitsyn in France present Falcone with gold and silver medals from Catherine II. This was a clear recognition of his talent, which the queen could not appreciate earlier. They say that at this Falcone, who spent on his main sculpture 15 years of life, I cried.

Bronze Horseman - title
The monument received the name Bronze Horseman later thanks to the poem of the same name by A.S. Pushkin, although in fact the monument is made of bronze.

Monument to the Bronze Horseman
Falconet depicted the figure of Peter I in dynamics, on a rearing horse, and thereby wanted to show not a commander and a winner, but first of all a creator and legislator. We see the emperor in simple clothes, and instead of a rich saddle - an animal skin. Only the laurel wreath crowning the head and the sword at the belt tell us about the winner and commander. The location of the monument on the top of the rock indicates the difficulties Peter overcame, and the snake is a symbol of evil forces. The monument is unique in that it has only three support points. On the pedestal there is an inscription “to PETER the first EKATERINE second summer 1782”, and on the other side the same text is indicated on Latin. The weight of the Bronze Horseman is eight tons, and the height is five meters.

Legends and Myths about the Bronze Horseman
There is a legend that Peter I, being in a cheerful mood, decided to cross the Neva on his favorite horse Lisette. He exclaimed: “Everything is God’s and mine” and jumped over the river. The second time he shouted the same words and was also on the other side. And for the third time he decided to jump over the Neva, but he misspoke and said: “Everything is mine and God’s” and was immediately punished - he was petrified on Senate Square, in the place where the Bronze Horseman now stands.
They say that Peter I, who was ill, lay in a fever and imagined that the Swedes were advancing. He jumped on his horse and wanted to rush to the Neva towards the enemy, but then a snake crawled out and wrapped itself around the horse’s legs and stopped him, preventing Peter I from jumping into the water and dying. So the Bronze Horseman stands in this place - a monument to How a Snake Saved Peter I.
There are several myths and legends in which Peter I prophesies: “As long as I am in place, my city has nothing to fear.” And indeed, the Bronze Horseman remained in his place during Patriotic War 1812 and during the Great Patriotic War. During the siege of Leningrad, it was lined with logs and boards, and bags of sand and earth were placed around it.
Peter I points towards Sweden with his hand, and a monument is erected in the center of Stockholm Charles XII, Peter's opponent in the Northern War, left hand which is directed towards Russia.

Interesting facts about the Bronze Horseman monument
Transportation of the stone pedestal was accompanied by difficulties and unforeseen circumstances, and emergency situations often occurred. The whole of Europe followed that operation, and in honor of the delivery of the Thunder Stone to Senate Square, a commemorative medal was issued with the inscription “Like daring. Genvarya, 20, 1770"
Falcone conceived a monument without a fence, although the fence was still installed, but has not survived to this day. Now there are people who leave inscriptions on the monument and damage the pedestal and the Bronze Horseman. It is possible that a fence will soon be installed around the Bronze Horseman
In 1909 and 1976, restoration of the Bronze Horseman was carried out. The latest examination, carried out using gamma rays, showed that the sculpture's frame is in good condition. Inside the monument was placed a capsule with a note about the restoration carried out and a newspaper dated September 3, 1976

Bronze Horseman in St. Petersburg - main symbol Northern capital and newlyweds and numerous tourists come to Senate Square to admire one of the most famous attractions of the city.

The monument to Peter I ("Bronze Horseman") is located in the center of Senate Square. The author of the sculpture is French sculptor Etienne-Maurice Falconet.
The location of the monument to Peter I was not chosen by chance. Nearby are the Admiralty, the building of the main legislative body founded by the emperor. Tsarist Russia- Senate. Catherine II insisted on placing the monument in the center of Senate Square. The author of the sculpture, Etienne-Maurice Falconet, did his own thing by installing the “Bronze Horseman” closer to the Neva.
By order of Catherine II, Falcone was invited to St. Petersburg by Prince Golitsyn. Professors of the Paris Academy of Painting Diderot and Voltaire, whose taste Catherine II trusted, advised to turn to this master.
Falcone was already fifty years old. He worked at a porcelain factory, but dreamed of great and monumental art. When an invitation was received to erect a monument in Russia, Falcone, without hesitation, signed the contract on September 6, 1766. Its conditions determined: the monument to Peter should consist of “mainly an equestrian statue of colossal size.” The sculptor was offered a rather modest fee (200 thousand livres), other masters asked twice as much.

Falcone arrived in St. Petersburg with his seventeen-year-old assistant Marie-Anne Collot.
The vision of the monument to Peter I by the author of the sculpture was strikingly different from the desire of the empress and the majority of the Russian nobility. Catherine II expected to see Peter I with a rod or scepter in his hand, sitting on a horse like a Roman emperor. State Councilor Shtelin saw the figure of Peter surrounded by allegories of Prudence, Diligence, Justice and Victory. I. I. Betskoy, who supervised the construction of the monument, imagined it as a full-length figure, holding a commander’s staff in his hand. Falcone was advised to direct the emperor's right eye to the Admiralty, and his left to the building of the Twelve Colleges. Diderot, who visited St. Petersburg in 1773, conceived a monument in the form of a fountain decorated with allegorical figures.
Falcone had something completely different in mind. He turned out to be stubborn and persistent. The sculptor wrote: “I will limit myself only to the statue of this hero, whom I do not interpret either as a great commander or as a winner, although he, of course, was both. The personality of the creator, legislator, benefactor of his country is much higher, and this is her and it is necessary to show people. My king does not hold any rod, he extends his beneficent right hand over the country he is traveling around. He rises to the top of the rock that serves as his pedestal - this is an emblem of the difficulties he has conquered.”

Defending the right to his opinion regarding the appearance of the monument, Falcone wrote to I. I. Betsky: “Could you imagine that the sculptor chosen to create such significant monument, would be deprived of the ability to think and have someone else’s head control the movements of his hands, and not his own?
Disputes also arose around the clothes of Peter I. The sculptor wrote to Diderot: “You know that I will not dress him in the Roman style, just as I would not dress Julius Caesar or Scipio in the Russian style.”
Falcone worked on a life-size model of the monument for three years. Work on "The Bronze Horseman" was carried out on the site of the former temporary Winter Palace Elizaveta Petrovna. In 1769, passersby could watch here as a guards officer took off on a horse onto a wooden platform and reared it. This went on for several hours a day. Falcone sat at the window in front of the platform and carefully sketched what he saw. The horses for work on the monument were taken from the imperial stables: the horses Brilliant and Caprice. The sculptor chose the Russian “Oryol” breed for the monument.

Falconet's student Marie-Anne Collot sculpted the head of the Bronze Horseman. The sculptor himself took on this work three times, but each time Catherine II advised to remake the model. Marie herself proposed her sketch, which was accepted by the empress. For her work, the girl was accepted as a member of the Russian Academy of Arts, Catherine II assigned her a lifelong pension of 10,000 livres.

The snake under the horse’s foot was sculpted by the Russian sculptor F. G. Gordeev.
Preparing a life-size plaster model of the monument took twelve years; it was ready by 1778. The model was open for public viewing in the workshop on the corner of Brick Lane and Bolshaya Morskaya Street. Various opinions were expressed. The Chief Prosecutor of the Synod resolutely did not accept the project. Diderot was pleased with what he saw. Catherine II turned out to be indifferent to the model of the monument - she did not like Falcone’s arbitrariness in choosing the appearance of the monument.
For a long time no one wanted to take on the task of casting the statue. Foreign masters demanded too much a large amount, and local craftsmen were frightened by its size and complexity of work. According to the sculptor's calculations, in order to maintain the balance of the monument, the front walls of the monument had to be made very thin - no more than a centimeter. Even a specially invited foundry worker from France refused such work. He called Falcone crazy and said that there was no such example of casting in the world, that it would not succeed.
Finally, a foundry worker was found - cannon master Emelyan Khailov. Together with him, Falcone selected the alloy and made samples. In three years, the sculptor mastered casting to perfection. They began casting the Bronze Horseman in 1774.

The technology was very complex. The thickness of the front walls had to be less than the thickness of the rear ones. At the same time rear end became heavier, which gave stability to the statue, which rested on only three points of support.
Filling the statue alone was not enough. During the first, the pipe through which hot bronze was supplied to the mold burst. The upper part of the sculpture was damaged. I had to cut it down and prepare for the second filling for another three years. This time the job was a success. In memory of her, on one of the folds of Peter I’s cloak, the sculptor left the inscription “Sculpted and cast by Etienne Falconet, a Parisian in 1778.”
The St. Petersburg Gazette wrote about these events: “On August 24, 1775, Falconet cast a statue of Peter the Great on horseback here. The casting was successful except in places two feet by two at the top. This regrettable failure occurred due to an incident that could have been foreseen, and therefore prevented it was not at all. The above-mentioned incident seemed so terrible that they feared that the entire building would catch fire, and, therefore, that the whole business would not fail and carried the molten metal into the mold, without losing his courage in the face of the danger presented to him. life. Falconet, touched by such courage at the end of the case, rushed to him and kissed him with all his heart and gave him money from himself.”
According to the sculptor’s plan, the base of the monument is a natural rock in the shape of a wave. The shape of the wave serves as a reminder that it was Peter I who led Russia to the sea. The Academy of Arts began searching for the monolith stone when the model of the monument was not yet ready. A stone was needed whose height would be 11.2 meters.
The granite monolith was found in the Lakhta area, twelve miles from St. Petersburg. Once upon a time, according to local legends, lightning struck the rock, forming a crack in it. Among local residents The rock was called "Thunder Stone". That’s what they later began to call it when they installed it on the banks of the Neva under famous monument.
The initial weight of the monolith is about 2000 tons. Catherine II announced a reward of 7,000 rubles to the one who comes up with the most effective way deliver the rock to Senate Square. From many projects, the method proposed by a certain Carbury was chosen. There were rumors that he had bought this project from some Russian merchant.
A clearing was cut from the location of the stone to the shore of the bay and the soil was strengthened. The rock was freed from excess layers, and it immediately became lighter by 600 tons. The thunder-stone was hoisted with levers onto a wooden platform resting on copper balls. These balls moved on grooved wooden rails lined with copper. The clearing was winding. Work on transporting the rock continued in both cold and hot weather. Hundreds of people worked. Many St. Petersburg residents came to watch this action. Some of the observers collected fragments of stone and used them to make cane knobs or cufflinks. In honor of the extraordinary transport operation, Catherine II ordered the minting of a medal with the inscription “Like daring. January 20, 1770.”
The rock was dragged overland for almost a year. Further along the Gulf of Finland it was transported on a barge. During transportation, dozens of stonemasons gave it the necessary shape. The rock arrived at Senate Square on September 23, 1770.

By the time the monument to Peter I was erected, the relationship between the sculptor and imperial court completely spoiled. It got to the point that Falcone was credited with only a technical attitude towards the monument. The offended master did not wait for the opening of the monument; in September 1778, together with Marie-Anne Collot, he left for Paris.
The installation of the Bronze Horseman on the pedestal was supervised by the architect F. G. Gordeev.
Grand opening monument to Peter I took place on August 7, 1782 (old style). The sculpture was hidden from the eyes of observers by a canvas fence with the image mountain landscapes. It had been raining since the morning, but it did not stop a significant number of people from gathering on Senate Square. By noon the clouds had cleared. The guards entered the square. The military parade was led by Prince A. M. Golitsyn. At four o'clock, Empress Catherine II herself arrived on the boat. She climbed onto the balcony of the Senate building in a crown and purple and gave a sign for the opening of the monument. The fence fell, and to the beat of drums the regiments moved along the Neva embankment.
By order of Catherine II, the following is inscribed on the pedestal: “Catherine II to Peter I.” Thus, the Empress emphasized her commitment to Peter's reforms.
Immediately after the appearance of the Bronze Horseman on Senate Square, the square was named Petrovskaya.
A. S. Pushkin called the sculpture “The Bronze Horseman” in his poem of the same name. This expression has become so popular that it has become almost official. And the monument to Peter I itself became one of the symbols of St. Petersburg.
The weight of the "Bronze Horseman" is 8 tons, the height is more than 5 meters.
During the siege of Leningrad, the Bronze Horseman was covered with bags of earth and sand, lined with logs and boards.
Restorations of the monument took place in 1909 and 1976. During the last of them, the sculpture was studied using gamma rays. To do this, the area around the monument was fenced off with sandbags and concrete blocks. The cobalt gun was controlled from a nearby bus. Thanks to this research, it turned out that the frame of the monument can still serve for many years. Inside the figure was a capsule with a note about the restoration and its participants, a newspaper dated September 3, 1976.
Currently, "The Bronze Horseman" is popular place for newlyweds.
Etienne-Maurice Falconet conceived The Bronze Horseman without a fence. But it was still created and has not survived to this day. “Thanks to” the vandals who leave their autographs on the thunder stone and the sculpture itself, the idea of restoring the fence may soon be realized.

P The monument to Peter I ("The Bronze Horseman") is located in the heart of St. Petersburg - on Senate Square.
The location of the monument to Peter I was not chosen by chance. Nearby are the Admiralty, founded by the emperor, and the building of the main legislative body of tsarist Russia - the Senate.

In 1710, on the site of the current Bronze Horseman, in the premises of the “drafting shed,” the very first wooden St. Isaac’s Church was located.

Catherine II insisted on placing the monument in the center of Senate Square. The author of the sculpture, Etienne-Maurice Falconet, did his own thing by installing the “Bronze Horseman” closer to the Neva.

Falcone was invited to St. Petersburg by Prince Golitsyn. Professors of the Paris Academy of Painting Diderot and Voltaire, whose taste Catherine II trusted, advised to turn to this master.
Falcone was already fifty years old. He worked at a porcelain factory, but dreamed of great and monumental art. When an invitation was received to erect a monument in Russia, Falcone, without hesitation, signed the contract on September 6, 1766. Its conditions determined: the monument to Peter should consist of “mainly an equestrian statue of colossal size.” The sculptor was offered a rather modest fee (200 thousand livres), other masters asked twice as much.

Falcone arrived in St. Petersburg with his seventeen-year-old assistant Marie-Anne Collot. Most likely, she also helped him in bed, but history is silent about this...
The vision of the monument to Peter I by the author of the sculpture was strikingly different from the desire of the empress and the majority of the Russian nobility. Catherine II expected to see Peter I with a rod or scepter in his hand, sitting on a horse like a Roman emperor. State Councilor Shtelin saw the figure of Peter surrounded by allegories of Prudence, Diligence, Justice and Victory. I. I. Betskoy, who supervised the construction of the monument, imagined it as a full-length figure, holding a commander’s staff in his hand.

Falcone was advised to direct the emperor's right eye to the Admiralty, and his left to the building of the Twelve Colleges. Diderot, who visited St. Petersburg in 1773, conceived a monument in the form of a fountain decorated with allegorical figures.

Falcone had something completely different in mind. He turned out to be stubborn and persistent. The sculptor wrote:
“I will limit myself only to the statue of this hero, whom I do not interpret as either a great commander or a winner, although he, of course, was both. The personality of the creator, legislator, benefactor of his country is much higher, and this is what needs to be shown people. My king does not hold any rod, he extends his beneficent right hand over the country he travels around. He rises to the top of the rock that serves as his pedestal - this is an emblem of the difficulties he has conquered.”

Defending the right to his opinion regarding the appearance of the monument, Falcone wrote to I. I. Betsky:

“Could you imagine that the sculptor chosen to create such a significant monument would be deprived of the ability to think and that the movements of his hands would be controlled by someone else’s head, and not his own?”

Disputes also arose around the clothes of Peter I. The sculptor wrote to Diderot:

“You know that I will not dress him in Roman style, just as I would not dress Julius Caesar or Scipio in Russian.”

Falcone worked on a life-size model of the monument for three years. Work on “The Bronze Horseman” was carried out on the site of the former temporary Winter Palace of Elizabeth Petrovna.
In 1769, passersby could watch here as a guards officer took off on a horse onto a wooden platform and reared it. This went on for several hours a day. Falcone sat at the window in front of the platform and carefully sketched what he saw. The horses for work on the monument were taken from the imperial stables: the horses Brilliant and Caprice. The sculptor chose the Russian “Oryol” breed for the monument.

Bust of Falconet Marie-Anne Collot 1773

For a long time, no one wanted to take on the task of casting the statue. Foreign craftsmen demanded too much money, and local craftsmen were frightened by its size and complexity of work. According to the sculptor's calculations, in order to maintain the balance of the monument, the front walls of the monument had to be made very thin - no more than a centimeter. Even a specially invited foundry worker from France refused such work. He called Falcone crazy and said that there was no such example of casting in the world, that it would not succeed.

Finally, a foundry worker was found - cannon master Emelyan Khailov. Together with him, Falcone selected the alloy and made samples. In three years, the sculptor mastered casting to perfection. They began casting the Bronze Horseman in 1774.

The technology was very complex. The thickness of the front walls had to be less than the thickness of the rear ones. At the same time, the back part became heavier, which gave stability to the statue, which rested on only two fulcrum points (the snake is not a fulcrum, more on that below).

Filling alone, which began on August 25, 1775, did not solve the problem. Khailov was entrusted with her supervision. 1,350 pounds of bronze were prepared, and when all of it, molten, flowed into the mold, the mold cracked and the metal poured onto the floor. A fire started. Falconet ran out of the workshop in horror, the workers ran after him, and only Khailov remained in place. Risking his life, he wrapped the mold in his homespun and coated it with clay, picked up the spilled bronze and poured it back into the mold. The monument was saved, and the errors that arose due to the accident were later corrected when polishing the statue.

The St. Petersburg Gazette wrote about these events:
“The casting was successful except in places two feet by two at the top. This regrettable failure occurred through an incident that was not at all foreseeable, and therefore impossible to prevent. The above-mentioned incident seemed so terrible that they were afraid that the entire building would go up in flames, but, Therefore, the whole business would not have failed. Khailov remained motionless and carried the molten metal into the mold, without losing his courage in the least at the danger to his life presented to him, Falconet, touched at the end of the matter, rushed to him and kissed him with all his heart and gave him his own. money."

However, as a result of the accident, numerous large defects (underfilling, adhesions) were formed in the horse’s head and the figure of the rider above the waist.

A bold plan was developed to save the statue. It was decided to cut off the defective part of the statue and refill it, increasing new uniform directly onto the surviving parts of the monument. Using pieces of plaster mold, a wax model of the top of the casting was obtained, which was a continuation of the wall of the previously cast part of the statue.

The second filling was carried out in November 1777, and it was a complete success. In memory of this unique operation, on one of the folds of Peter I’s cloak, the sculptor left the inscription “Sculpted and cast by Etienne Falconet, Parisian 1778.” Not a word about Khailov.

According to the sculptor’s plan, the base of the monument is a natural rock in the shape of a wave. The shape of the wave serves as a reminder that it was Peter I who led Russia to the sea. The Academy of Arts began searching for the monolith stone when the model of the monument was not yet ready. A stone was needed whose height would be 11.2 meters.

The granite monolith was found in the Lakhta area, twelve miles from St. Petersburg.

Once upon a time, according to local legends, lightning struck the rock, forming a crack in it. Among the locals, the rock was called "Thunder Stone".

That’s what they later began to call it when they installed it on the banks of the Neva under the famous monument. There were rumors that in the old days there was a temple on it. And sacrifices were made.

The initial weight of the monolith is about 2000 tons. Catherine II announced a reward of 7,000 rubles to the one who comes up with the most effective way to deliver the rock to Senate Square. From many projects, the method proposed by a certain Carbury was chosen. There were rumors that he had bought this project from some Russian merchant.

A clearing was cut from the location of the stone to the shore of the bay and the soil was strengthened. The rock was freed from excess layers, and it immediately became lighter by 600 tons. The thunder-stone was hoisted with levers onto a wooden platform resting on copper balls. These balls moved on grooved wooden rails lined with copper. The clearing was winding. Work on transporting the rock continued in both cold and hot weather. Hundreds of people worked. Many St. Petersburg residents came to watch this action. Some of the observers collected fragments of stone and used them to make cane knobs or cufflinks. In honor of the extraordinary transport operation, Catherine II ordered the minting of a medal with the inscription “Like daring. January 20, 1770.”

The poet Vasily Rubin wrote in the same year:
The Russian Mountain, not made by hands here, Hearing the voice of God from the lips of Catherine, Came to the city of Petrov through the Neva abyss. And she fell under the feet of the Great Peter.

By the time the monument to Peter I was erected, the relationship between the sculptor and the imperial court had completely deteriorated. It got to the point that Falcone was credited with only a technical attitude towards the monument.

Portrait of Marie-Anne Collot

The offended master did not wait for the opening of the monument; in September 1778, together with Marie-Anne Collot, he left for Paris.

And the monument, weighing about 10 tons, still had to be erected...

The installation of the Bronze Horseman on the pedestal was supervised by the architect F. G. Gordeev.

The grand opening of the monument to Peter I took place on August 7, 1782 (old style). The sculpture was hidden from the eyes of observers by a canvas fence depicting mountain landscapes.

It had been raining since the morning, but it did not stop a significant number of people from gathering on Senate Square. By noon the clouds had cleared. The guards entered the square. The military parade was led by Prince A. M. Golitsyn. At four o'clock, Empress Catherine II herself arrived on the boat. She climbed onto the balcony of the Senate building in a crown and purple and gave a sign for the opening of the monument. The fence fell, and to the beat of drums the regiments moved along the Neva embankment.

By order of Catherine II, the following is inscribed on the pedestal: “Catherine II to Peter I.” Thus, the Empress emphasized her commitment to Peter's reforms. Immediately after the appearance of the Bronze Horseman on Senate Square, the square was named Petrovskaya.

A. S. Pushkin called the sculpture “The Bronze Horseman” in his poem of the same name. This expression has become so popular that it has become almost official. And the monument to Peter I itself became one of the symbols of St. Petersburg.
The weight of the "Bronze Horseman" is 8 tons, the height is more than 5 meters.

Neither the wind nor the terrible floods could defeat the monument.

Legends

One evening, Pavel, accompanied by his friend Prince Kurakin, walked through the streets of St. Petersburg. Suddenly a man appeared ahead, wrapped in a wide cloak. It seemed that he was waiting for the travelers and, when they approached, he walked next to them. Pavel shuddered and turned to Kurakin: “Someone is walking next to us.” However, he did not see anyone and tried to convince the Grand Duke of this. Suddenly the ghost spoke: “Paul! Poor Pavel! I am the one who takes part in you.” Then the ghost walked ahead of the travelers, as if leading them along. Approaching the middle of the square, he indicated the place for the future monument. “Goodbye, Pavel,” said the ghost, “you will see me here again.” And when, leaving, he raised his hat, Pavel saw Peter’s face with horror.

The legend is believed to date back to the memoirs of Baroness von Oberkirch, who details the circumstances under which Paul himself publicly told the story. Bearing in mind the high reliability of the memoirs based on many years diary entries and the friendship between the Baroness and Maria Feodorovna, Paul’s wife, most likely, the source of the legend is indeed the future sovereign himself...

There is another legend. During the War of 1812, when the threat of Napoleonic invasion was real, Alexander I decided to transport the monument to Peter to Vologda. A certain captain Baturin dreamed strange dream: as if the Bronze Horseman is moving off the pedestal and galloping towards Stone Island, where Emperor Alexander I was at that time. “Young man, what have you brought my Russia to?” Peter tells him. “But as long as I stand in my place, my city has nothing to fear.” Then the horseman, announcing the city with a “heavy ringing gallop,” returned to Senate Square. According to legend, the dream of the unknown captain was brought to the attention of the emperor, as a result of which the statue of Peter the Great remained in St. Petersburg.
As you know, the boot of a Napoleonic soldier, like a fascist one, did not touch the St. Petersburg pavements.

The famous mystic and spirit seer of the 20th century, Daniil Andreev, in “The Rose of the World,” described one of the hellish worlds. There he reports that in infernal Petersburg the torch in the hand of the Bronze Horseman is the only source light, while Peter sits not on a horse, but on a creepy dragon...

During the siege of Leningrad, the Bronze Horseman was covered with bags of earth and sand, lined with logs and boards.

When after the war the monument was freed from boards and bags, the Star of the Hero appeared on Peter’s chest Soviet Union. Someone drew it with chalk...

Restorations of the monument took place in 1909 and 1976. During the last of them, the sculpture was studied using gamma rays. To do this, the area around the monument was fenced off with sandbags and concrete blocks. The cobalt gun was controlled from a nearby bus. Thanks to this research, it turned out that the frame of the monument can serve for many years to come. Inside the figure was a capsule with a note about the restoration and its participants, a newspaper dated September 3, 1976.

Etienne-Maurice Falconet conceived The Bronze Horseman without a fence. But it was still created and has not survived to this day. “Thanks to” the vandals who left their autographs on the thunder stone and the sculpture itself, the idea of restoring the fence was realized.

Recent studies of the monument have brought two sensations:

1. The monument rests not on three points of support, as previously thought, but on two. The snake and the horse's tail do not carry any load.

The snake trampled by the horse and the tail serve only to separate air flow and reducing the windage of the monument.

2. Peter’s pupils are made in the shape of hearts. Peter looks at the city with loving eyes. So Falcone conveyed to his descendants the news of Peter’s love for his brainchild - St. Petersburg.

3. Thanks to Pushkin and his poem, the monument is called “Copper”, but it is not made of copper, but of bronze.

4. The monument was depicted on Yudenich’s money.

The monument is covered in myths and legends. It is also in foreign collections. This is how the Japanese imagined it.

Illustration from the 11th scroll "Kankai Ibun". The monument is painted Japanese artist from the words of the sailors)))

Late in the evening the monument is no less mysterious and beautiful...

Info and part of the photo (C) Wikipedia, the site "Legends of St. Petersburg" and other places on the Internet

Monument to the Bronze Horseman (Russia) - description, history, location. Exact address, phone number, website. Tourist reviews, photos and videos.

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The Bronze Horseman on Senate Square - not the only monument Peter I in St. Petersburg, but, undoubtedly, the most famous, which has long become a symbol of the Northern capital. Already at the end of the 18th century, many urban legends and anecdotes were associated with him, and in the 19th century, poets of that time liked to mention the Bronze Horseman in their works.

Contrary to its name, the monument is not copper, but bronze. And the monument to Peter received its popular name thanks to Pushkin’s poem of the same name.

According to the idea of Catherine II, who commissioned the sculpture, and her consultants, Voltaire and Diderot, Peter was to appear in the solemn guise of a victorious Roman emperor with a staff and scepter in his hands. However, the French sculptor Etienne Falconet, invited to work on the monument, dared to argue with the crowned persons and showed the world a different Peter, without belittling either his military talents or his title as a wise ruler.

After 16 years of work, on August 7, 1782, according to the old style, an equestrian statue of the young king was solemnly installed on a huge pedestal. The monument was the first to be installed in the city square. Peter confidently sits on a rearing horse, covered with a bear skin. The animal represents the rebellious, ignorant people who submitted to the emperor. A huge snake was crushed by the horse’s hooves, symbolizing opponents of the reforms, and also serving as an additional support for the structure. The figure of the king himself expresses strength, desire and steadfastness. On the granite block, by order of Catherine the Great, a dedication was carved in two languages, Russian and Latin: “To Peter I Catherine II in the summer of 1782.”

On the granite block on which the monument is erected, by order of Catherine the Great, a dedication is carved in two languages, Russian and Latin: “To Peter I Catherine II in the summer of 1782.”

An interesting story is connected with the stone on which the monument is erected. It was found by peasant Semyon Vishnyakov at a distance of about 9 km from the square. The Thunder Stone was delivered to the installation site of the monument using a device that was truly unique for that time, working on the principle of a bearing. Initially the block weighed about 1600 tons. Then, according to Falcone's design, it was hewn and given the shape of a wave, personifying the power of Russia as a maritime power.

History of the creation of the monument

And many more stories and tales still circulate around the emperor’s gesture. Peter's right hand is imperiously extended forward, with his left he firmly holds the reins. Some say the hand points down to the place where “the city will be founded.” Others believe that Peter is looking towards Sweden - the country with which he fought so long and persistently. In the 19th century one of the most interesting versions. She claims that right hand Petra actually faces the Neva. With his left elbow, he pointingly points towards the Senate, which in the 19th century served as Supreme Court. The interpretation of the gesture is as follows: it is better to drown yourself in the Neva than to have a trial in the Senate. It was a very corrupt institution in those days.

Address: Senate Square, metro station "Nevsky Prospekt", "Admiralteyskaya".

Perhaps there are few such recognizable monuments in the world as the famous “Bronze Horseman” installed on Senate Square in St. Petersburg.

For two centuries it has been a symbol of the Northern capital, its pride and a place of pilgrimage for tourists. Many St. Petersburg legends are associated with him, one of which served as the plot for poem of the same name Pushkin. But who is depicted on the Bronze Horseman monument?

The concept of the monument

“The Bronze Horseman” was solemnly presented to the public during the reign of Empress Catherine. This happened on August 7, 1782, exactly one hundred years after the most famous monarch in the history of our country, Peter the Great, ascended the throne of the Russian state. It was his equestrian statue that later became known as the Bronze Horseman.

Catherine always considered herself a successor to Peter's work in strengthening the power and glory of Russia, increasing its territory and wealth. It is not surprising that for the centenary of the coronation of the great emperor, she planned to create a majestic monument to him. For this purpose, the most famous sculptor France at that time Etienne-Morris Falconet.

The artist agreed to work for a fairly modest remuneration, inspired by the opportunity to create a truly majestic work monumental art.

History of the creation of the monument

Although Catherine wanted to see a traditional monument in European style, where Peter would be presented as an ancient Roman emperor, Falcone immediately rejected this idea.

He saw the monument as completely different - powerful and at the same time flying, mobile, embodying the desire for new horizons.

At that time, no one had yet created an equestrian statue depicting a rearing horse. The main difficulty was to accurately calculate its weight and make the monument stable when supported by only three small points – the horse’s hind hooves and the tip of the horse’s tail.

It took a lot of time to find a pedestal for the monument - a huge solid rock in the shape of a wave. It was found after a long search near Lakhta, and it took a lot of work to deliver the block weighing 1,600 tons to St. Petersburg. For this purpose, a special road was built with wooden rails covered with copper, along which the rock was rolled using thirty steel balls. Transporting the pedestal took almost a year and was itself brilliantly executed. engineering problem.

Even more difficulties arose during the casting of the statue. It was designed to be hollow from the inside, with the front part having thinner walls than the back. Abundance small parts and the complexity of the work led to numerous errors and alterations, which, in turn, increased the production time of the monument.

Falconet had to study foundry himself, since the craftsmen assigned to help him had little understanding of what the sculptor wanted from them. The statue was completely cast only in 1777, after several unsuccessful attempts.

Falcone never got to see main work His life was completely completed: Catherine was angry with him for numerous delays, and he had to leave Russia home to France.

The sculpture was completed by A. Sandots, who completed the external decoration of the monument, Y. Felten, who supervised the installation of the statue on the pedestal, and F. Gordeev, who sculpted a snake that is trampled by Peter’s horse and which symbolizes the enemies of Russia.

Legends associated with the Bronze Horseman

The magnificent monument gave rise to many legends. Some of them inspired horror - such as stories that on moonless nights the emperor’s statue comes to life, jumps off its pedestal and gallops through the streets of the city he built. Others were based on real events.

So, they say that the idea for the monument to Falcone was inspired by an incident that happened to Peter on the banks of the Neva. One day the tsar bet with his entourage that he would jump from one bank of the Neva to the other. This happened approximately in the place where the monument now stands. The emperor took a running start on his horse and exclaimed: “God and I!” - and flew to the other side. Of course, he immediately wanted to repeat the jump and, shouting: “Me and God!” - sent the horse into a jump.

However, this time the horse fell into the icy water of the Neva approximately in its middle, and the king had to be pulled out by boats. From then on, as they say, Peter did not allow anyone to put himself higher than God.